Types of Danish Pastry

Cassie DamewoodUpdated February 21, 2017

Danish pastry is a yeast variation of puff pastry, with buttery layers of light flaky crust filled with fresh fruit, fruit compote, dried fruit such as raisins or currants, custard, sweetened cream cheese or almond paste. The Danish shapes, as well as the fillings, are varied and up to the baker, although the international symbol for Danish bakeries is the pretzel shaped Danish called a kringle.

Danish Basics

Based on the method for making puff pastry, it is important that the butter in the dough be cold and equally distributed to make the pastry properly rise and crisp as the moisture from the melting butter creates steam during baking. Work in a chilly room and roll the dough on a slab of marble to keep the butter from prematurely melting. True Danish always starts with the dough being spread with remonce, a creamed mixture of equal parts butter, sugar and nuts or marzipan, before the other fillings are added. Every recipe calls for a proofing or rising period of about 30 minutes before baking and Danish is always brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with coarse sugar before baking.

Turnovers

This is the most common type of Danish found in American bakeries. It is made by spooning whole or puréed fruit onto one-half of a square spread with remonce and sealing the dough to form a triangle before proofing and baking.

Envelopes or Pockets

This variation on turnovers is most used for sweet cheese or lemon curd Danish pastries. After spreading a dough square with remonce and filling it, fold it from point to point, side to side and seal it. When baked, the pastry forms a crunchy crust over the half the filling, leaving half of it exposed at the top and bottom.

Danish Pinwheels

Although a bit more labour intensive, these pastries are one of the prettiest Danish shapes. With a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut a remonce covered pastry square from each corner to the centre, stopping just short of the midpoint. Fold every other point into the centre, overlapping each one and pressing each point firmly into the dough. After proofing, press the puffy centre flat and fill rounded half teaspoon of jam or other filling before glazing with the egg wash and baking.

Other Types of Danish

Once you master the art of Danish pastry dough, you can shape it any way you prefer and make individual Danish or large ones to cut into serving pieces. Other popular Danish shapes include swirls, combs, squares, braids, crescents and horns. Fillings can be constant throughout the pastry or fruit, cheese and other ingredients can be mixed together or layered for added flavour and texture.

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About the Author

Cassie Damewood has been a writer and editor since 1985. She writes about food and cooking for various websites, including My Great Recipes, and serves as the copy editor for "Food Loves Beer" magazine. Damewood completed a Bachelor of Arts in English with an emphasis in creative writing at Miami University.